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Free Articles
Five Pitfalls
of Performance Incentive Programs
We design incentive programs to motivate employees to
perform more productively and effectively and to deliver an
overall service experience of value. Why is it, then, that
many incentive programs fail to motivate employees to deliver
the performance we need? Quite simply, many incentive plans
fail to work because they are poorly executed. Here are five
very common execution problems that cause incentive plans to
fail.
1. Unclear objectives. Employees work more effectively
and productively when they know exactly what their results
need to be and they are given clear direction on how to
achieve the desired results. Failing to clearly define
objectives is a guarantee that you will not achieve your
desired results.
2. Failing to balance desired outcomes. You get what
you reward. If you design an incentive program that rewards
productivity, such as reducing call talk time, you will get
that, but your service quality will certainly suffer.
Likewise, rewarding quality only will result in a decline in
productivity. Your incentive plan must balance both quality
and productivity.
3. Failing to combine coaching with incentive program.
For an incentive program to result in real and lasting
performance improvement, it must be combined with coaching.
CSRs must have a clear understanding of the desired goals for
quality and productivity, understand what improved performance
looks like, and receive regular, consistent coaching on the
desired behaviors.
4. Setting standards so high that CSRs view reward as
unattainable. Make sure the goals you set are attainable.
Certainly, reaching the goals should require CSRs to focus and
work harder, but they do need to be realistic. If the average
speed of answer is 60 seconds overall in your call center
toady, a goal of answering calls within 5 seconds may just not
be possible. If goals are set too high, employees won’t strive
to meet them.
5. Not offering “valuable” rewards. The carrot at the
end of the stick must be desired – otherwise, it’s not worth
the effort. All things being equal, money is going to be more
effective than praise. Generally speaking, the most powerful
motivator for incentive programs is the opportunity to earn 5
– 10% base pay over a 12-month period. In other words, if a
CSR earns $20,000 per year, they should be given the
opportunity to earn $1,000 - $2,000 in a 12-month period for
meeting 100% of the goals. An incentive plan offering a
maximum award of $250 over a 12-month period may not motivate
employees.
Avoiding the five pitfalls of incentive plans discussed here
will put you on course to developing a plan that works (and
will save you lots of time and heartache). Next Tuesday I’ll
present elements of a well-designed, well-implemented
incentive program.
About the Author
Since
1999 Myra Golden has been providing customer service training
solutions for some of the world’s most recognized brands.
From Fortune 500 companies to Government agencies, Myra gives
clients ground-floor access to specialized measurably
effective training and timely market intelligence, helping
them completely restore customer confidence in their brands
after any service mishap –without giving the store away.
Myra
is the former head of Consumer Affairs for Thrifty Rent-A-Car
System, where she led a strategic team that regained the
goodwill of unhappy customers and she worked with the
company’s loyalty program to create value for the most
frequent customers. She
can be reached at info@myragolden.com
or 866-873-8419. Her website is www.myragolden.com.
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